Grill 88 review: Intimate London steakhouse gets to the meat of the matter

Opened in April this year, Grill 88 in The Biltmore, on London ’s historic Grosvenor Square in the upmarket Mayfair neighbourhood, promises a dining experience that is intimate, vibrant and high quality. With only 32 tables and a sleek, art-deco-styled interior with bold coloured furniture and vivid artwork, the restaurant is a chic and comfortable spot to enjoy high-end food, notably premium steak and seafood. While Grill 88’s selection of top-quality beef is its main draw, executive chef Luis Campos tells The National the restaurant “is more than just a steakhouse”. We head down for a meal to see if it makes the cut. Open and serene are two words that come to mind about the restaurant’s ambience. Sage green tones are complemented by cool white marble surfaces and brushed brass metalwork. The early evening sunlight flows in at dusk thanks to large sash windows overlooking Grosvenor Square, which highlight the abstract hanging artworks by New Zealand’s La Viola. The green velvet dining chairs are spacious and sturdy, a perfect encouragement for a relaxed but plentiful eating experience. An open-plan kitchen and a chance for guests to cook their own steaks at the table on Himalayan salt or a lava block adds some ceremonial fanfare if that’s what you’re after. After my dining companion and I are ushered to our table, chef Campos appears carrying a large wooden platter with a selection of prime beef cuts to examine. He explains the differences in the taste, textures and age of each variety, which ranged from grain-fed Japanese A5 Kagoshima Black Breed rib-eye Wagyu, outstanding aged Lake District sirloin steaks and Australian cuts, to large full-blood Wagyu Chateaubriand. The quality of the meat is Grill 88’s top priority, as is the dry-ageing process, which is done in-house in one of two visible fridges, each set at a different temperature. Chef Campos says he is experimenting with how many days to age the Japanese Wagyu, in an attempt to offer ever high-quality meat. The Portuguese chef says he often goes on reconnaissance visits to competing steakhouses and ranks Grill 88 alongside Sydney’s famously popular Firedoor and Ramsey’s The Grill in London, adding proudly that his restaurant has “a better atmosphere because we’re more approachable”. The restaurant’s small capacity, too, allows the team to pay close attention to detail. “We are about bringing the best quality and the best ingredients,” he says. The fish, for instance, is brought in fresh daily from Cornwall, and the restaurant serves the finest Kelly and Gillardeau oysters from Ireland and France. Our meal began with an amuse-bouche: a gulp of gazpacho with strawberries, which is an intriguing palate cleanser, chased by a one-bite caramelised onion tart to whet the appetite. A steady stream of generously portioned dishes with exquisite flavours follows. The ox cheek make my dining companion and I nearly swoon in our seats. The succulent meat of ox cheek marrow contrasts delightfully with the crunchy shallots, rosemary and garlic. Reach for the bones with your fingers and devour. The Dorset crab-and-lobster cocktail in horseradish panna cotta and lemongrass foam is another veritable taste explosion. Sitting atop a mousse and covered in a zesty foam, it looks more like a dessert, with a garnish of wasabi jelly balls adding to the illusion. A tasty and beautiful plate in all. I could have passed on the starter of Wagyu beef tartare with white soy-cured egg yolk, devil’s sauce and black truffle. It is flavoursome and fresh, but a little heavy on the Parmesan snow, which can get overpowering. The dish would, perhaps, sit better alone without the conflicting tastes and textures of other starters. If you want to go straight to mains (more on this below), a side dish of charcoal-grilled cheesy corn and jalapenos is a plentiful alternative to a starter. To save us from potential food envy, the chef recommends we opt for the popular butcher’s platter of three different cuts of meat, and I’m grateful he did. Prepared with specially sourced holm oak charcoal and cooked to perfection, the Japanese Wagyu is undoubtedly the best tasting, and at £110 ($141) per 200g, you’d expect it to be. Glisteningly marbled, the decadent fat melts with the succulent meat to create the perfect bite. The 100-day dry-aged British beef is in second place. Its nutty flavour and tighter – though still tender – texture is an altogether different yet no less tasty alternative to the pricier Wagyus. The Australian Wagyu is fine, but pales in comparison with the Japanese and British versions. Appetisers range from £16 to £26; non-steak mains go from £24 to £45; and steak cuts cost between £48 and £110 per 200g. Halal meat is available. Grill 88 is open Tuesday to Sunday from 6pm to 10.30pm. Reservations can be made here or by calling 0044 20 7596 3200. This review was conducted at the invitation of the restaurant

Grill 88 review: Intimate London steakhouse gets to the meat of the matter

Mayfair venue dry-ages its own beef and serves everything from grain-fed Japanese ribeye Wagyu to Lake District sirloin steaks